dbcve.org
IpadosOperating system · Apple

CVE-2026-43656

HIGH · 7.3 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-05-11
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 14.8.7 / 15.7.7 or later.
See remediation →
82/100
Remediation priority · High
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
An out-of-bounds write issue was addressed with improved input validation. This issue is fixed in iOS 18.7.9 and iPadOS 18.7.9, iOS 26.5 and iPadOS 26.5, macOS Sequoia 15.7.7, macOS Sonoma 14.8.7, macOS Tahoe 26.5. Parsing a maliciously crafted file may lead to an unexpected app termination.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · high confidence

An out-of-bounds write vulnerability in Apple operating systems caused by improper input validation when parsing files. A maliciously crafted file can trigger memory corruption leading to unexpected application termination.

MitigationApply the available security updates: iOS 18.7.9/iPadOS 18.7.9 or iOS 26.5/iPadOS 26.5 for mobile devices, and macOS Sequoia 15.7.7, Sonoma 14.8.7, or Tahoe 26.5 for Mac systems.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
IpadosOperating system
Affected:< 18.7.9>= 26.0, < 26.5
Iphone OsOperating system
Affected:< 18.7.9>= 26.0, < 26.5
macOSOperating system
Affected:>= 14.0, < 14.8.7>= 15.0, < 15.7.7>= 26.0, < 26.5

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Network
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
Low
Integrity
Low
Availability
Low

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:L

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify the Apple operating system
    On iOS/iPadOS, go to Settings > General > About. On macOS, go to System Settings > About or run 'sw_vers' in Terminal.
    Affected if The device runs iOS, iPadOS, or macOS (any of these three) and the parsing component is present (standard on all these OSes).
  2. Check the installed iOS or iPadOS version
    On the device, go to Settings > General > About and note the Version number (for example, 18.5 or 26.3).
    Affected if The version is less than 18.7.9, OR is greater than or equal to 26.0 but less than 26.5.
  3. Check the installed macOS version
    Go to System Settings > About and note the macOS version (for example, 14.5 or 15.5), or run 'sw_vers -productVersion' in Terminal.
    Affected if The version is 14.0 or higher but less than 14.8.7, OR is 15.0 or higher but less than 15.7.7, OR is 26.0 or higher but less than 26.5.
  4. Confirm file parsing capability
    This vulnerability affects the file parsing functionality present in core OS components. Verify the device can open or process files (standard capability).
    Affected if The device can parse files - this is enabled by default on all affected iOS, iPadOS, and macOS installations.

You are affected if your device runs iPadOS, iPhone OS, or macOS and its version falls within any of the vulnerable ranges: <18.7.9, 26.0-26.4, 14.0-14.8.6, 15.0-15.7.6, or 26.0-26.4.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 14.8.7 / 15.7.7 / 18.7.9 or later
Fixed in 14.8.715.7.718.7.9
Interim mitigation

Apply the available security updates: iOS 18.7.9/iPadOS 18.7.9 or iOS 26.5/iPadOS 26.5 for mobile devices, and macOS Sequoia 15.7.7, Sonoma 14.8.7, or Tahoe 26.5 for Mac systems.

Recommended fix High confidence

iOS 18.7.9/iPadOS 18.7.9, iOS 26.5/iPadOS 26.5, macOS Sonoma 14.8.7, macOS Sequoia 15.7.7, or macOS Tahoe 26.5

  1. For iPhone and iPad users: Go to Settings > General > Software Update and install iOS 18.7.9 or iPadOS 18.7.9 (or iOS 26.5/iPadOS 26.5 for newer devices)
  2. For macOS users: Go to System Settings > General > Software Update and install macOS Sonoma 14.8.7, macOS Sequoia 15.7.7, or macOS Tahoe 26.5 depending on your current macOS version
  3. Alternatively, manually download the appropriate IPSW (iOS) or PKG (macOS) from Apple's official downloads page and install via Finder or recovery mode
Caveat Standard Apple update risks apply - ensure backup before updating; some legacy features may be deprecated in major version upgrades

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Ipados Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation1.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
6.0 hours of engineering $1,060
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2026-43656 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data